Wall shear stress variations in a 90-degree bifurcation in 3D pulsating flows

The exact role of fluid mechanics in the patho-physiological process of atherosclerosis has been a research topic over many years, yet without clear conclusive result. One has observed that morphological manifestations of the disease are found at some well-defined locations: certain vessel bifurcations and in curvatures. The flow in these regions is characterized by unsteadiness and often separation. Currently there are no complete theories that can explain the process since the different components in the process are not fully understood. Here we carry out detailed computations of the unsteady flow in an arterial segment typical to location of early appearance of arterial lesions. We study the wall shear stress (WSS) field variations near a junction with the purpose of identifying fluid-mechanical parameters that can be related to sites of atherosclerosis. The results show that regions associated with atherosclerosis experience highly elevated temporal- and spatial-derivatives of the WSS, also at less commonly known locations. Thus, large derivatives in time and space do not seem unique for the most common areas of atherosclerosis. Differences in WSS character between these locations are identified as differences in the time period of back flow as well as differences in the magnitude of the WSS derivatives. The data is presented in a way that facilitates understanding of the variations in WSS.